


How Long?

by triflingthings



Category: Anastasia (1997), Anastasia - Flaherty/Ahrens/McNally
Genre: Background Anya/Gleb, F/M, If you think that I’m going to make Anya’s hair anything but red you’re lying to yourself, Modern AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-12
Updated: 2020-01-12
Packaged: 2021-02-27 03:18:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,269
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22220155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/triflingthings/pseuds/triflingthings
Summary: It’s been months and Anya has yet to receive her wedding film. Gleb says she should just give it time, but when has anyone known Anya to listen to anyone but herself?
Relationships: Dimitri | Dmitry & Anya | Anastasia Romanov (Anastasia 1997 & Broadway), Dimitri | Dmitry/Anya | Anastasia Romanov (Anastasia 1997 & Broadway)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 12





	How Long?

Anya stood outside of the small house, hesitant to raise her fist to knock on the door. Gleb told her to just wait a little longer, that these things took time to finish. But it had been six months, and Anya couldn’t wait any longer. Her parents and siblings had been dying to see her wedding film, and so had she. But man who filmed it hadn’t even given her a date to pick it up, and Anya was pretty certain that six months was well over the usual amount of time for these things. 

The man in question was Dmitry Suyadev: Gleb’s best friend and film graduate. Gleb was determined to have him film their wedding, as Dmitry was apparently great at what he did. Anya didn’t know him very well, as he seemed to be very closed off. _Reserved_ , Gleb called him. Anya wasn’t so sure. Dmitry was short every time she had spoken to him, and he tended be in his own world most of the time. The only other person she had ever seen him with besides Gleb was Vlad Popov, the owner of a rather posh restaurant about a black away from the Eiffel Tower itself. 

But today, Anya was here for one thing: her wedding film. She was determined to find out just what had taken him so long to finish it. Her determination, she decided, was what compelled her to finally knock lightly on the door. 

It was a few quiet moments before anyone answered. The door swung open to reveal Dmitry, shirtless and slightly disheveled. 

“Anya?” He looked surprised and slightly groggy, as if he had just woken up. Anya checked her watch, only to realize that it was 9:30 in the morning on a Saturday, and began to feel slightly bad that she woke him up on his day off. 

“Oh god, I’m so sorry. I didn’t even realize how early it is, and...” Anya trailed off, becoming slightly awkward. 

Dmitry shook his head. “No, no it’s alright. What’s up? Come on in.” He opened the door wider and beckoned her inside. She shyly followed him to the living room, watching as he picked up a jumper and threw it over his head.

Anya stood against the wall, fidgeting with her hands. She opened her mouth, only to close it immediately after. She wasn’t sure how to tell him that he had taken too long with her film and that she wanted to know just what’s been going on. Instead, she sighed and said, “Its just that... Gleb and I have really been wanting to see the film from our wedding, and it’s just that it’s been six months already.”

Dmitry was quiet for a moment. “Yeah, I’m sorry. I’m working on it, I am. I just have to get the editing right and then I’ll get it to you, honest,” he said finally, still not meeting her eye.

Anya looked around the living room for a moment. Something on the coffee table caught her eye and compelled her legs to move her toward it. It was an empty DVD case with _Anya and Gleb_ scrawled on the cover in Sharpie. The TV was filled with a black screen, but Anya noticed a small pause sign in the top corner.

”Is this what’s on your TV, Dmitry?” Anya asked. She didn’t want to pry, but she was extremely stubborn and curiosity was winning out. 

“Uh- I-,” Dmitry stammered. “It’s still a work in progress. Really, I’ll get it to you by the end of the month.”

But Anya has already reached for the remote and pressed play. She just had to see it, she couldn’t help it. She had been so excited, as the day was so hectic that she didn’t have time to remember every aspect.

Clips of her and her mother, of her walking down the aisle in her floor length lace gown, of her and Gleb taking the first bites of their cake, of her dancing with Alexei and Gleb’s niece, and of her conversing with her Nana played across the screen. But it wasn’t the beautiful scenery or her family that kept her eyes glued to the screen. No, it was the fact that the camera was stuck on _her_. It was undeniable. During the dances, the camera zoomed in on Anya, as if the person filming completely disregarded that fact that Gleb was there at all. The camera focused on Anya’s smile, on her loud and full laugh, on _her_.

Dmitry was standing against the wall on the other side of the room, biting his lip and looking at his feet. If he wouldn’t meet her eye before, he definitely wouldn’t now. 

Anya’s mouth hung open throughout the film and after it had ended. “Dmitry I-,” Anya cut herself off. She didn’t even know what to say. There was no denying the obvious. All of the times she had caught him staring at her or acting awkward when she cane around started to make sense. Finally, she settled on, “How long?”

Dmitry scoffed. “Since the first day that I met you, Anya. God, you weren’t even supposed to know. I’m sorry, I didn’t even realize what I had done until after I went back and watched it. I didn’t know how to give you this when I know you and Gleb wanted to see each other in it.”

Anya’s heart softened without her permission. She didn’t trust herself to speak, so she didn’t. Instead, she ran her hair down her face and pushed her wispy red bangs out of her face. 

It wasn’t as if this had caused her to realize she had some kind of pent up love for Dmitry. Instead, it caused her to think about things she had forced into the back of her mind months ago. About how Gleb had always seemed like the safe option. Olga always said that he would never hurt her, and she was right. She’d always be secure, both financially and emotionally. There was no risk when it came to Gleb, and it took her a long time to get past that. Anya never had any spark with him, though she didn’t think that sparks existed between people. It was something she read about in books, not something she was ever supposed to experience. 

So where did this leave her? How was she just supposed to go home and forget about this? The truth is, she couldn’t.

”Dmitry, I’m sorry. I- I have to go,” Anya rushed out, picking up her coat and bag. She sped past him with tears in her eyes and flung herself out of the door.

Anya had no idea what she want, but she didn’t want safe. Today proved that to her. She wouldn’t settle. It wasn’t fair to her or Gleb, or to other people, apparently.

Dmitry, without knowing it, would force Anya to do what she knew she had to: he’d force Anya to live a little.   
  


. . .

Anya and Gleb officially divorced seven months into their marriage. Gleb was angry, confused, but he understood eventually. They agreed that space was necessary for a while, at least on Anya’s part. 

Anya wasn’t alone, though. She had her parents, her siblings, and a certain brown haired videographer to help her through it. 

Dmitry, Anya realized, was anything but a safe bet. He kept her on her toes throughout their newfound friendship, and introduced her to things she never thought she’d try. 

And, maybe Anya _did_ have some new pent up feelings for him. She’d deal with that soon enough, though. 

**Author's Note:**

> This idea is not my own!! I’ve read the concept in more than one fic and I’m pretty positive it might be based off of a book or a movie?? I’m not sure, but I just wanted to make it clear that I don’t claim this as my own plot :)


End file.
